Venus Williams will join her sister Serena at the inaugural Top Seed Open in Lexington, Kentucky next month, organisers have said.
The event’s organisers said last week Serena would return to the court for the first time since the novel coronavirus shutdown when she competes at the tournament, which begins on Aug. 10 at the Top Seed Tennis Club.
Seven-times Grand Slam champion Venus, who celebrated her 40th birthday last month, participated in the ongoing World TeamTennis event in West Virginia.
Two-time Australian Open winner Victoria Azarenka and 2017 U.S. Open champion Sloane Stephens are also confirmed for the tournament.
The WTA Tour is scheduled to resume in Palermo, Italy on August 3.
Elsewhere, American Danielle Collins has been dismissed from the World TeamTennis event in West Virginia for breaking COVID-19 protocols, organisers said on Tuesday.
One of only a few live sports events allowing fans in North America to attend amid the novel coronavirus pandemic, the entire three-week regular season of the WTT is being held at the Greenbrier resort in West Virginia.
“We have dismissed Danielle Collins ... for the remainder of the 2020 World TeamTennis season after breaking our COVID-19 protocols and leaving The Greenbrier Resort and the state of West Virginia,” WTT Chief Executive Carlos Silva said in a statement.
“The protocols have been put in place and communicated numerous times to protect the health and safety of our players, coaches and staff which are of utmost importance to WTT.”
Collins, who made the semi-finals of the 2019 Australian Open, criticised Novak Djokovic last month after the men’s world number one said it would be “impossible” to play this year’s U.S. Open under COVID-19 protocols proposed by organisers.
